Black Templar Invasion
This vid was really cool:
Sunday August 3 2008 El Companero Dificil
Sunday Sermon
Good Sunday Morning to all!
As usual, it is my hope to inspire, uplift and encourage you noble reader. I give my usual disclaimer: I am only a fellow journey-er. I make plenty of mistakes. I ask that my fellow-man be patient with me.
In 1992 I was in Santiago, Chile in a sector called Alicahue as an LDS missionary. My new companion was a Chilean named Segundo Nanco. As I was waiting in the chapel with another missionary named Elder Opazo, I was lamenting that I had been stuck with a number of “hard” companions and how I hoped that Elder Nanco would be easy to get along with.
Elder Opazo looked at me earnestly and said, “Usted Elder Gately es el companero dificil.”
“YOU are the difficult companion.”
So, I took out my notebook and wrote down some resolutions.
- One, that I would compliment him sincerely three times each day. Sincerely.
- Two, that I would not say anything negative about him either in public or in private.
- Three, that I would change any habit that he didn’t like without question.
We had a great time. We got along famously. I couldn’t change him. But I could change myself and my own perceptions.
I found out later that when he was assigned to me as a companion he was in a deep depression and had thought of giving up. But that two months later when we parted ways he was lighter of spirit and he served the rest of his mission.
This same attitude and principles have served me well in my marriage as well. Though I admit I haven’t been as consistent.
One of my favorite books of all time is Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball. It’s a hard book to read, but I’ve read it at least eight times. And by hard I mean it’s impossible to get through without finding something to improve on, or some difficult, but much-needed insight.
Here is an expanded version of one of my favorite passages from the book:
Before Spencer W. Kimball received confirmation of his calling as an Apostle, he felt he needed to make a visit to his hometown.
“Spencer’s worst worry was how to live up to his call. What about people he had offended? Would they resent him? He started visiting every man he had done much business with, to explain his new situation: ‘I’ve been called to a high position in my Church. I cannot serve in good conscience unless I know my life has been honorable. You and I have had dealings. If there was any injustice … I’ve brought my checkbook.’ Most shook hands and refused to hear any more. A couple of men fancied that in fairness they should have got a few hundred dollars more on certain sales. Spencer wrote the checks.
“Spencer’s worst worry was how to live up to his call. What about people he had offended? Would they resent him? He started visiting every man he had done much business with, to explain his new situation: ‘I’ve been called to a high position in my Church. I cannot serve in good conscience unless I know my life has been honorable. You and I have had dealings. If there was any injustice … I’ve brought my checkbook.’ Most shook hands and refused to hear any more. A couple of men fancied that in fairness they should have got a few hundred dollars more on certain sales. Spencer wrote the checks.
“He visited a neighbor. The two men had had a difference over use of the irrigation ditch that ran past their home lots. Spencer knocked at his door and apologized. ‘I felt very definitely that he had been the offender largely and that he had hurt me terribly, but I knew that no quarrel was one-sided and therefore I was willing to forgive and forget. …’
“A clerk in the stake whom Spencer had once taken to task for carelessness in keeping some Church financial records had been cold toward him ever since. Now Spencer looked him up and said he could not begin his apostleship with bad feelings between them. They talked it out.
“There was a woman in his stake so bitter she would cross the street to avoid him. She had never told him why. Spencer’s stenographer remembered him fidgeting in the Kimball-Greenhalgh office one morning, a folder under his arm. … ‘I hate to go. I never did anything so hard.’ But he went. He asked the woman, ‘What have I done against you?’ She thought he had intervened with the governor to oppose her husband’s being named to a state office.
“ ‘Who told you that?’
“ ‘My friends.’
“ ‘They were mistaken. I wouldn’t do that. And I don’t have that kind of influence with the governor anyway.’
“Their talk patched things up between them” (Edward L. Kimball and Andrew E. Kimball, Jr., Spencer W. Kimball [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1977], pp. 197–98).
Family Land
It was a great Sunday as usual, a lazy morning watching some movies, then off to church for some up-lifting. Afterwards we went for a walk and ended up chatting with a neighborhood family (the Barrowes) for about two hours, eating some grilled salmon and hummus.
In the evening, after the kids were in bed, I watched Stargate: Continuum with my wife while reading the Monster Manual. It’s a good life.
Saturday August 2 2008 Status Report
Picture: One of a pair of Basilisks. These are heavy support for an Imperial Guard army.
At this moment I am up at 5am with my daughter watching Flash Gordon, one of my favorite all time movies. (of course I FF through the scary parts).
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Friday, I went out to eat with some of the artists and we recounted disturbing tales of rats and dogs and juvenile delinqency down at the local Subway. We also had a brain-storm about sculpting and casting figures, and also creating some games down the line.
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In fact, we have just cast our first whole sculpt. More on that forthcoming. That’ll get painted up over the weekend.
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The following projects are under the brush and are due for completion in the next 4-10 days. There have been some delays mostly due to waiting for specialty orders. As usual, if you don’t see your project and want to get an update just contact me and I’ll respond promptly.
Empire 03 KO
Imperial Guard 01 ML
Imperial Guard 01 JT
Reptus 05 TC locked
Tau Verdaan 02 MM
Inquisition 03 RT
Imperial Guard 01 SM fw tanks
Khorne 03 JB (may be delayed one week)
Burning Sons 01 JR
Eldar 01 JR (may be delayed one week)
Biel Tan 01 CH
Anima 03 TC
Vampire Counts 02 LG
Emperors Champion BS
Ulthwe 01 AH
40K Radio Models
Terrain 02 AS
Bretonnians 01 JJ (first part only—knights)
Empire 03 KO
Imperial Guard 01 ML
Imperial Guard 01 JT
Reptus 05 TC locked
Tau Verdaan 02 MM
Inquisition 03 RT
Imperial Guard 01 SM fw tanks
Khorne 03 JB (may be delayed one week)
Burning Sons 01 JR
Eldar 01 JR (may be delayed one week)
Biel Tan 01 CH
Anima 03 TC
Vampire Counts 02 LG
Emperors Champion BS
Ulthwe 01 AH
40K Radio Models
Terrain 02 AS
Bretonnians 01 JJ (first part only—knights)
The following projects are in Assembly and are going under the brush in early August:
Emperors Gauntlets 02 SM
Dragonfly Nids 03 MG
Anima 03 TC
Reptus 05 TC
Black Orcs 01 ER
Imperial Guard 01 ML
Warhammer Buildings 01 AS
Daemons 01 JF
Urban Bases 02 JM
40K Radio figures
Angry Goats 01 TB bf
Elven Archer LN
Emperor’s Children 09 EB er
Khorne 03 JB
Questing Knights 05 JH
Ultramarines 01 AC
Ultramarines 01 MN
Tau 09 TO (bitz finally arrived)
Thursday July 31 2008 Trout Farm
Jonah and I headed out to a local trout farm to do some fishing. It was good to get away and spend some time with him. It’s a pond brooded over by willows. Jonah caught three fish and I caught none.
It’s good to get away from the world and to spend time with my eldest son. He’s two grades above in reading, and he likes to make plays on words. He’s the smart one in the family.
Those fishes were delishes.